Thursday, December 27, 2007

Benazir Bhutto Killed

Murder for political gain may be the third oldest motivation behind passion and revenge. There is something understandable, yet still condemnable, in individual retribution for an individual wrong. Killing for the purpose of achieving dominion over a population is a magnitude more serious and the assignation of the former Prime Minister and current candidate sends ripples of anxiety throughout the worldwide political community.

So what should we make of this latest use of suicidal homicide for Earthly gain? First, it needs to be understood that Benazir Bhutto was from a long tradition of Third World autocratic families playing ruthless power politics. Second, her affluent life was decidedly predisposed to the luxuries of Western culture, and thus against the purist Islam of much of the Pakistani population.

Mark Steyn: She was beautiful and charming and sophisticated and smart and modern, and everything we in the west would like a Muslim leader to be - though in practice, as Pakistan's Prime Minister, she was just another grubby wardheeler from one of the world's most corrupt political classes.

Andrew McCarthy: The real Pakistan is a breeding ground of Islamic holy war where, for about half the population, the only thing more intolerable than Western democracy is the prospect of a faux democracy led by a woman — indeed, a product of feudal Pakistani privilege and secular Western breeding whose father, President Zulfiquar Ali Bhutto, had been branded as an enemy of Islam by influential Muslim clerics in the early 1970s.

Leftists Who Love Her: Benazir Bhutto and Hillary Clinton have strong ties. Bhutto has hired Clinton campaign staffers. See this for some Bhutto background on corruption and political ties here in the US. It’s no wonder the Clinton campaign has been silent on the matter of Pakistan and Ms Bhutto.

As much as anything the events of today serve notice on all those who aspire to govern the United States that the 'War on Terrorism' is going to remain near the top of the agenda. The Jihadist movement in the Islamic world is finding shelter in Pakistan and they will defend their stronghold. Their belief in the absolute truth of Islam is not compatible with the Western world, and will remain a lethal danger no diplomacy will resolve.